Fading to Darkness
by E. Griffin
Summary: Three different people are trapped into Silent Hill, where a prophecy has revealed that two will take rule, and one will come to destroy all. **Update: Chapter 6**
1. Amy, In the Fog

** Fading to Darkness**

** Maggie Griffin**

Summary: Three different people find their way to Silent Hill, where a prophecy has revealed that two will take rule, and one will come to destroy all.

** Disclaimer: **Silent Hill doesn't belong to me. If it did, I would be playing with Pyramid Heads, and harassing nurses!

** ************

CHAPTER 1: AMY

_ In The Fog..._

My name is Amy. Amy Connors.

I'm fairly ordinary. I live in an ordinary town. Havenbrook Falls. I'm seventeen, finishing my last year in high school, going on to College and a career in advertising. Sounds ordinary enough I suppose. 

Not that different in appearence. 5"5 with a fairly slim frame, blue eyes, short copper-colored hair. Attractive enough, and not self-absorbed enough to flaunt it.

Ordinary.

So why am I standing here, hiding in an alleyway, clutching a heavy tire iron in my hands, and looking as though I had just seen the devil himself? Because I have. At least, something that could be described as such. God, I don't even know how I got here. This dank little alleyway. Yes, I remember running into it after that...thing, came running after me. 

I had thought it was a dog.

Well it was; albeit a skinned one, with blood and mukus dripping from its jaws.

I don't know where 'this' is. I know I'm not in the same place anymore. My mind's all a jumble. I remember waking up this morning. Havenbrook Falls, same as I had left it the night before. I remember thinking about the odd nightmares I had gone through during the night. Then, eating breakfast, grabbing my pack, heading for the front door and to school.

Opening the front door, closing it behind me, turning around, and....nothing.

I suddenly didn't know where I was. The streets were all different. Different, and deserted. Not at all like the streets had always been on a Monday morning. 

I had blinked.

Turning around, my hand still on the doorknob. My hand drewing back in shock as I had realized this was not my house. I remember thinking. _ What the hell?_ I remember jiggling the doorknob, only to find the door locked. No amount of yelling and pounding had brought about any answer.

What it had brought, was what I had first thought to be a rather large dog.

Now, here I was, in this alley.

Hoping to God that thing would not know where I was hiding, crouched behind a greasy green trash bin.

But I could hear the growling coming closer, and hear the faint protest of rusted hinges being pushed against. The small fence squeled as the thing pushed against it, but yielded. It could, I knew as much. And hear my distorted breathing, and sense my immense fear.

_ What the hell is it? God, what is happening?_

Some thoughts broke through, though no different then any of the others I've thought since leaving the house.

_ Where am I?_

The shuffling was getting louder.

_ What is that thing?_

I could hear the panting now, just on the other side of the bin, and a low growl. The stupid thing clawed at the bottom of the bin, his sharp claws creating a sickening noise on the concrete. It didn't realize I was on the other side, not under it.

Not for long.

It reared up suddenly, and slowly began to pad over towards me. I could feel the wall on my back, as I pressed up against it painfuly, my knuckles turning white from holding the tire iron so tightly.

I whimpered as the creature's massive, slim head come around the corner of the bin, sniffing and growling.

"GET AWAY!" my own voice startled me, and I felt an immense adrenaline rush course through my backbone as I raised my hands, bringing the tire iron down on the creatures head as hard as I could.

The sickening cracking noise didn't get to me until the thing was sprawled on the floor, its head still the only thing fully visible to me. Now, the mucus I had seen dripping from its mouth was seeping out of the things eyes, which leered at me lifelessly.

Turning, I gagged violently.

_ What hell had I come to...?_


	2. Marco, Dark Hospital

** CHAPTER 2: MARCO**

**********

_ Nightmare Silent Hill..._

_ What. The. Hell._

Was it too much to ask? I mean really. A guy just goes to the hospital to get treated for a busted knee, falls asleep from all the pain killers and Tylenol's, and wakes up....here.

Now, after practically flying off the small, already uncomfortable bed, those pain killers had worn off. So an uncomfortable pain shot up my leg, and I had to grab a chair to keep from falling over. The mattress was stained. No, that was an understatement. It was _ coated_ in blood. Sick, thick, red blood.

And I had been lying on it.

My stomach did a flip-flop, and I felt the bile rise to my throat. It some serious restraining to keep it down.

Suddenly, I felt a surge of panic.

_ That stuff wasn't there when you came...._

I tried to look over my shoulder, desperately wanting to know how wounded I was to have lost so much blood. But I felt no pain, and could see no gash....

Freezing in place, I took the moment to notice my surroundings.

"What...," I started, but my mouth shut firmly as I heard the sound.

It had an amazing way of dragging my attention from the rest of the room.

From the rusted walls.

From the blood-caked floors.

From the rank, death smell that hung in the air.

The sound. The sound of something moving. But there was something odd about it. Something that made me start to back away. Something about the slow, dragging steps, and the silence in it all. 

Something frightening.

"Hello?" I was surprised at how choked my voice came out. How much I had to force it. I wasn't usually that easily intimidated. Little things, like sounds, didn't scare me. I was the kind of guy who withstood a lot to prove things. To myself, to everybody else. 

From the beginning. From going to high school for almost four years. With graduation just around the corner. I'm Marco Ganes. I had a good track record. Good looking. Standard blonde hair, blue eyes combo, and a good build. I had full bragging rights there.

So why was I so afraid of a noise?

Then again, it's not every day a guy wakes up to discover what I had just seen. No, the blood had definitely not been there when I arrived. 

Then the hinges on the door squealed, and the thing came into view.

"HOLY SHIT!"

The moment I saw it, I stumbled backwards, landing back on the disgusting bed. This time however, neither the pain in my knee, not the condition of the mattress mattered much.

The _ thing, _could have been a person once. Maybe.

It was dressed in what looked like a nurse's uniform. 

The resemblance stopped there.

The face, devoid of any features but the crevices in the misshapen skin. One small, black hole that could pass as an eye. Or maybe a mouth....

"HOLY, HOLY SHIT!"

And on its back, a growth. At first glance, it looked like some sort of malformed hump. As the thing shambled, I saw it pulsate, the membrane-swollen skin shifting.

The bile rose further.

And of course, there was the blood.

Splatters of it on the clothing, the skin....the scalpel it waved in the air in front of it.

As I had fallen back onto a sitting position on the bed, the thing seemed to grow even more excited, shambling faster, waving the sharp little instrument like a demented child.

The shock of it froze me, and the thing was almost atop me before I finally gained enough sense back to move out of the way, rolling to one side as it reared up, then came down towards me. The scalpel impaled itself into the blood-soaked mattress, and the thing clawed at me with slippery fingers, the other hand pulling the scalpel free.

I rolled off the bed, landing painfully on my knees, pain surging up one leg. The thing, still clutching my wrist, brought the scalpel around. At the last moment, I jerked my hand free, and the thing impaled its own wrist.

I ran out the door then, my knee burning in pain.

The thing inside, pulled at the scalpel, and started slowly after me.


	3. Erika, In the Fog

** CHAPTER 3: ERIKA**

**********

_ In The Fog..._

My name is Erika.

I think.

At the moment, my head feels so rattled, I'm not really sure of anything I'm seeing or feeling. Not sure of how I ended up here.

At first, I thought I was dreaming. I could do that sometimes, be sleeping, then suddenly realize it was just a dream. This certainly had all the aspects of a dream. I had been in a classroom moments before. Correction, I had been struggling to stay *awake* in a classroom, moments before.

18th century European History class usually did that to me. That, and staying on the computer playing _ Citizen Bad_ until 1:30 AM.

"That must be it!" I said to myself. So I had to be dreaming.

Because I had suddenly found myself awakening on a large bed. In a room I had never seen before. The room in question was bare, albeit the bed, a closet, and a small chest off to one side. On the chest, there lay what looked like a pamphlet.

"Just a dream."

I wandered over to the chest, and picked up the pamphlet, reading the words typed neatly in the center.

** _ Silent Hill Resort Motel_**

Satisfying Customers since 1890

Below the text was a small black and white picture of a flat, one-floor building. A motel, like the brochure advertised. Opening the pamphlet, I skimmed through some paragraphs about the pricing and accommodations, and how "brightened and at-home" the customers would feel upon spending their time at that particular motel.

Then my eyes fell on another picture. Black and white like the one on the cover. Slightly less faded. But I recognized the room. It was furnished, and looked inviting. This room where I now sat, was cold, and as faded as the picture. But it was the same room.

I paused momentarily.

_ I can read this. Isn't there supposed to be some sort of rule that I can't read stuff while I'm dreaming?_

"Oh shit...,"

I wasn't dreaming. It was official now. Still, I pinched myself. A childish thought, yet sure proof as to the reality of my surroundings. 

"Where the hell am I?" I asked myself aloud, well aware that talking to oneself was the first sign of panic. But who cared in this situation. "Fine...I'll just go find someone else to talk to!"

Oddly rational thinking.

_ I must have gotten amnesia. Cracked my head. Forgotten._

Sure, there were so many rational explanations. But that seemed like the most likely. I had come here for one reason or another, gotten hurt somehow, and forgotten everything up to some day at school.

Perfectly rational.

But I couldn't stop that feeling. That familiar feeling we all got. An uplifting in your chest, like the butterflies trying to pry their way out through your chest. Like some twisted _ Aliens_ movie. 

_ Sure. One more minute and a little sewer rat will burst out of my chest, tap dance a song, and tell me I really am dreaming!_

I took a deep breath.

_ Let's just recap and make sure I haven't gone completely brain dead...._

"My name is Erika Kane. I am...17 years old! Right. I go to Lakeside High....in the city of Toronto!"

_ Great girl genius, you still know who you are. You deserve a pat on the head and a cookie!_

I blew a strand of my long, curly brown out of my eyes, dark and very narrowed at the moment.

After another moment of feeling paranoid about my situation, I finally rose and headed for the door, opening it with caution.

When I stepped outside, I found myself looking into dense fog.

"Silent Hill....you can see the sights for miles!" I muttered, shutting the door behind me and heading for what looked to be the office.

Three doors down, I heard an odd sound from behind one of the motel doors.

Pausing, and put my ear to the door.

_ Stop being a little pervert..._

But the sound was odd. A scratching, and an strange, whiny-like high screech. 

Like someone chocking with a high C.

"Hello? Hey, are you alright in there?"

The sound stopped instantly, and I suddenly felt very nervous. More so then before. I could still hear movement, faint, but present.

_ What if it's some drunk guy...comes out and molests you...?_

I tried to push the thought away...and found myself falling backwards as the window to the right of the door smashed open violently, glass flying and nearly catching my cheeks. I landed on the floor just in time, the shards missing me be half-a-second.

Then I saw the thing.

The scream tore it's way out of my throat.

_ A DINOSAUR!_

That's the first thing I thought of when I saw the large, bird-like creature with the reddish wings, and bird-looking snout. It screeched, beating its wings and flying out the window.

"OH MY GOD!"

My voice was shrill as the thing saw me, and instantly recovered itself, heading back down to the earth, right at my face.

I then felt strong hands hefting me up from behind, and a voice screamed into my ear.

"GET UP! COME ON GET UP!"

It was a man's voice. Low but clearly demanding, even with this somewhat horrifying situation. A British accent, and a definite pushy attitude.

Especially since the man dragged me to my feet, and violently pushed me forward, running ahead of me.

"RUN DAMMIT!" He yelled, reaching a door ahead of us.

_ The office._

I ran, with the thing screeching and flying at my back. The man had opened the door, and had already dived inside. Moments later, I was there, and felt him pull me inside, with the creature's talons just nicking my back.

He slammed the door then, and locked it.

The screeching was louder, and I screamed as I saw a window break, fearing it would get in. But the windows were re-enforced with thick bars. Probably being placed their to avoid robberies.

_ Or freaky mutated birds trying to eat you alive!_

"Are you alright?" the man asked, startling me out of my reverie. In all the haste to get away from the bird-thing still flapping around the building, I had forgotten about him. I turned, wanting to know who he was.

The man was at the other window, his hand resting against the sill, and glancing between the outside, and looking back at me in haste. He looked to be in his early forties, with white and gray straight hair that fell straight down to his chin. From far, I couldn't see his eyes, which continued darting back and forth.

Almost like a neurotic.

He was tall, and thin-though not unpleasantly so. A pair of thin-framed spectacles rested before his eyes, which were serious, intelligent ones. As for clothing. Bit odd. A long white doctor's coat, with an unreadable blurry name tag attached, and shiny black leather shoes that tapped with each step.

I suddenly felt strange.

_ Watch out around this guy...._

The little voice was acting up again. The little paranoid voice. But this time, there was something there that told me it was right. Something about this man I didn't like. Something that made me feel uneasy.

"What in bloody hell were you doing out there on your own?" he demanded, his tone still somewhat unbecoming.

"Touring! What the hell do you think!" I replied, equaling the snap in his voice. The near-encounter with the thing outside had seriously unhinged my nerves. I had no patience for *anything* at the moment. Much less lip from some strange man I didn't even know.

My tone seemed to startle him, and he paused momentarily. When he spoke again, his voice seemed less rude.

"Look, I'm sorry for doing that. Pulling at you, then yelling like I did. But it's dangerous out there. What you were doing wandering about, without a weapon no less...?"

"I DON'T KNOW OKAY....," I yelled, cutting him off. I fell backwards onto a sofa, which was thankfully far from the windows. My head fell into my hands, my elbows resting on my knees. "I don't know about anything! I just...woke up here! At this motel, in this weird town I've never heard of...I can't remember how I got here, or anything....," my voice became weaker with each word, until I just trailed off.

"Big surprise. This demonic excuse for a town has a way of messing with your mind. I'm Stine, Christopher Stine by the way! I'm a doctor over at the hospital...at least I was...," he trailed off, shooting another glance out the window.

"Great! Nice to meet you Doc. I'm Erika Kane. Up 'till know, I was falling asleep in school, in another town, and woke up in this motel. Now, care to diagnose me and tell me I'm crazy? It would make me feel a hell of a lot better!"

Doctor. Stine's mouth was set in a thin line, his eyes narrowed in thought behind his spectacles. 

"I wish I could. I wish I could tell you this is all just some nightmare. But the fact is, your not the only one thinking that you had lost your mind. No, I most assuredly don't remember things this way when I went to sleep last night!"

_ Great, so I haven't lost my mind._

Another shriek from the creature sent me flying off the sofa, and to the middle of the room, turning my back on Stine. The thing flapped nearer, and I couldn't keep a scream from tearing out of my throat as it broke another window.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON?" I screamed, once the thing gave up a second time.

I turned to face Stine.

Who had somewhat, vanished into thin air.


	4. Amy, Hell's Roads

** CHAPTER 4: AMY, HELL'S ROADS**

**********

_ In The Fog..._

I don't know how long I sat there, trying not to stare at the dog-thing. Having emptied my stomach, I now rested my head against the wall behind me, breathing heavily. Its glassy stare unnerved me, as if the thing were still watching me through dead eyes. A coughing fit startled me, and I clutched my chest. Rising to my feet, I stayed kneeling for a couple of seconds as the fit passed.

After another moment, I managed to tell my legs to move, and I stood. Cautiously, I moved around the dog's head, the tire iron still gripped tightly in my hands. For some reason, I expected the thing to jump up and attack me again.

_ I wouldn't be all that surprised if it smiled at me and said hello..._

"Oh Jesus...," I felt my empty stomach perform another flip-flop as I got a better look at it. From afar, it had looked disgusting enough. But up close...

It was bare. Like someone had caught it, and skinned the thing alive. Flayed it until the muscle and blood seeped through and around it. A small amount of airy smoke rose from the body, vanishing in the cold, foggy air. I kneeled down next to, against my better judgement. The smoke that rose, vile to smell, was caused by the odd heat emitted from the corpse.

And at the point, I could safely say it was dead.

I didn't want to leave the alley, but never the less, found myself wandering the streets once more. Once more, lost in the haze and trying to see through a thick fog I had for some reason, missed to notice earlier.

_ Yeah, being chased by a skinned dog from hell will do that to you...make you overlook those obvious things!_

I kept walking. Passing stores and houses, cars that looked like they had been deserted. Then again, *everything* looked deserted.

"Where is everyone?"

I had walked a while now, and not run into another living person. Not even a sound. No sound at all....

I shivered.

Then I heard it. The distant, faint sound of something catching the wind. A flapping sound, growing stronger and stronger, like immense wings. Yet I saw nothing. The flapping faded away as quickly as it had come, and I breathed a sigh of relief.

The sigh suddenly turned into a choked scream of shock as the thing came at me from behind. I had just enough time to turn before it rammed into me, the talons raking my right shoulder. 

_ OH FUCK_

The talons buried deeply into my shoulder, and I felt a burning pain, then a liquid seeped through my shirt, and I felt it go down my arm. The pain was intense, but the adrenaline rush returned. Fueled by the burning in my shoulder, and the terror of this creature, which even that had attached itself to me and was nearing my throat with its beak-like mouth. Upon seeing it closer, I could see the deadly, sharp little teeth inside.

_ It's gonna bite my goddamn head off...clear off my neck, SNAP!_

My thoughts were strangely comical in such a situation.

"GET THE HELL OFF OF ME YOU FREAK!" I screamed, holding the thing by either side of its scaly, slimy head. The deep black eyes stared at me soullessly, turning this way and that like some demented animal.

I was on my back now, and my head turned about violently, trying to find the tire iron that had flown out of my hands when the thing had hit me from behind.

"Oooh...," I felt a sickly moan escape my lips, as my fingers closed over the things eyes. 

Closed and squeezed.

The unearthly sound it emitted was something straight from hell. A screechy howl, reminding me both of a dog howling and a baby screeching.

My fingers dug deeper, and I tried to not think about it. Tried not to think about the pus, and the blood which flowed from the thing's eyes, and over my shaking hands.

It was too disgusting.

But it worked.

The bird-thing released it's grip, and fell backwards, convulsing and thrashing blindly on the floor. It rolled about madly, screeching and trying to fly, repeatedly ramming itself into the cement road.

I saw the tire iron a few feet away, and wasted no time in grabbing it. Even with such a limited weapon, I still felt somewhat better to feel the cold metal in my hand.

I watched it thrash about a bit longer, then brought the edge of the tire iron down. The first blow connected with the thing's lower back, and I heard a distinct cracking sound. 

_ The spine. I cracked the thing's spine._

It still moved. Rearing its head about and dragging itself around on the road.

Another blow, this time landing it on the neck. This time the sound was sickening. A gurgle mixed with a sloshing sound. It reminded me of someone squeezing a sponge filled with water.

Again, this time the end going right through, and embedding into the ground underneath it.

_ Oh man...._

If I hadn't earlier, I would have certainly vomited my lungs out now. The stench. The unbearable stench. Rotted, musky scent that rose from the wound on the creature's throat.

It was dead now, the only movement being an involuntary twitch every few moments.

I was shivering now, and a cold chill had entered my body, starting at my hands and spreading.

I walked away from the corpse, going to the further side of the road, wanting a better cover. Stores and trees lined this side, with cars parked here and there. Once more, all is silent.

I think that scares me the most.

As I walked, I noticed a large sign pasted on the wall. It was a large picture of a town, faded, but still readable.

"Silent Hill...," something about the name written in big black bold letters attracted my attention. A sudden feeling of familiarity swept through me. An un explainanable sense of deja vu. There was something about this town. This, 'Silent Hill'.

_ Gee, besides what you've already seen? Noooo... What a smart girl!_

Beside the large sign were brochures, tacked up to the wall.

_ Maps..._

Quickly, I ripped one off and unfolded it, gazing at the unfamiliar street names and places.

_ So I am in another town..._

The thought was finally confirmed. It was both reassuring and frightening. At least I knew where I was. Sort of.

_ Silent Hill. But where is that?_

So I knew the name.

_ Well, maybe I'd be able to find some sign of humanity. I can't be the only one here._

But I was worried. I had seen monsters, and empty streets, and this fog. But no other people.

I was completely alone.


	5. Marco, Un Necessary Treatment

** CHAPTER 5: MARCO, UN NECESSARY TREATMENT**

**********

_ Nightmare Silent Hill..._

I ran out into the hallway, expecting to find someone who could help me. Someone that could call the police, and have then come and arrest the maniac-thing that had been in my room. Even know, I could hear it shambling about inside, coming closer towards me.

Now, I was a strong guy. I could handle myself in nearly every sort of situation. 

_ But this shit is seriously out of my league..._

The hallways were empty on either side.

_ What the hell kind of hospital is this?_

I had definitely never seen anything like it. The walls were peeled, blooded. Covered in human...everything. Same with the floors, which on a second glance, I discovered was actually grating. I couldn't see anything below that. All around me was almost pitch black, and my eyes were fighting to gain a better portion of sight.

I could hear the thing closer now, shuffling on unsteady legs...hunched over, waving that damn scalpel in the air...

_ STOP IT._

I forced the thoughts out of my mind. But I could still hear the shuffling, and in another moment, my thoughts would become a brutal reality.

So I started on through the darkness, feeling my way through the dim hallways until my eyes could see somewhat better. It wasn't so hard to see in front of my anymore. I saw a door up ahead of me, and quickened my pace.

Finally, my hand clasped the doorknob and pushed. To my immense relief, the door opened with a loud squeak, and led me into another section of this nightmare hospital.

"Isn't there anyone else around here?" I asked myself aloud, frustrated and afraid nearly out of my mind.

_ Not if there are any more of those bloody, scalpel-happy freaks running around there isn't! Ask yourself why!_

I took a moment to look around my surroundings. This hallways was actually lit. Weakly, with only a small lightbulb, already cracking down the middle. But still lit. 

Enough for me to be able to see the thing coming at me from across the hallway.

The scream that ripped out of my throat startled even me. 

The thing. It was hunched over, though lower then the nurse creature I had seen in my hospital room. For a moment, I thought it had no arms, but then realized that it was restrained with a tight, blood-soaked strait-jacket. Its face was grotesque. It didn't look like it had any eyes, just dark hollows, crawling with mucus and blood. Its mouth was agape, opening and half-closing rhythmically. When it opened its mouth once more, I could see the dark green drool dripping thickly from one corner of its scarred, twisted lips. The lips were drawn back tightly, revealing the teeth in a morbid grinning fashion.

And it was blocking the only other way out.

Except for going back to where I had just come from.

_ Not unless you want a scalpel shoved down your throat!_

The strait-jacket moved closer, step by step, swinging its torso left and right in what could look like some obscene dance. Its jaws snapping faster now. I could hear it now, emitting a gurgling, groaning sound.

My eyes darted around the room, desperately searching for something. Anything.

_ SHIT. A WEAPON, AN EXIT, ANYTHING._

My mind was screaming, while I felt the panic deepen. Mere moments, and this thing would be dripping its noxious drool down my throat.

It was then I saw the office. To the right of me, it looked to be a receptionists desk, with a low roof and a caged door. The door was slightly ajar, and the roof looked to be just low enough to let but a hand through.

_ Thankfully not an entire strait-jacket wearing maniac._

It was halfway across the room, and seemed to read my thoughts as it saw me looking towards the office. It quickened its pace, shambling a bit faster, and emitting those sick sounds with even more vigor.

So I dove for the office, pulling the caged door open, and slipping inside. I breathed in relief as I saw the heavy lock on the door, and barred the way in. Now the thing stood outside the door, pushing itself against it repeatedly.

"Not today you ugly fuck!" I muttered, feeling somewhat better. However meager, this office seemed a good place to be. The door was sturdy enough, and the little roof only low enough for limited access from anything trying to get at me.

It was then I decided to try and find out what was going on. There were papers scattered all over the counter beside me. As I saw the bloody fingerprints on the stained sheets, I wondered who had previously touched them.

_ And if they died screaming._

The morbid thought found itself into my head, and promptly decided to stay.

"Alright, get off it Marco...it's you that you should be worrying about right now!" I reminded myself.

Yes, the thing was still pounding away at the door, and I was trapped in this little corner.

_ It's safe now...but when more of those things come?_

"No..when they come!" I tried to reassure myself. But standing there, listening to the grunts and sounds the thing made outside, and looking at the bloody sheets in front of me...

_ When. When they come._

I picked up one of the sheets, and read it. It was a list of doctor's working at the hospital, and the name, in big bold letter's right at the top.

** ALCHEMILLA HOSPITAL**

_ KAUFFMAN, M : DIRECTOR_

** _ BLANCKE, S : HEAD SUPERVISOR_**

STINE, C : HEAD SURGEON

** _ WEST, H : NEUROLOGY_**

ANDROS, I : SURGERY

The list continued on, listing Doctor's I had never heard of. Then the hospital itself, was totally unfamiliar to me.

_ Alchemilla....Alchemilla...._

I tried to remember desperately. For a shred of memory, for something, anything that could lead me to knowing where I was.

I had been in a hospital to begin with. But it had been Denmark Memorial, not Alchemilla. 

_ And it hadn't been crawling with maniacs out to stab and/or eat you either!_

Right.

I took a handful of the papers, and sat on a chair as far from the door and the small open counter roof as I could. Skimming through the pages, I discovered a large, fold-out map of the hospital, and tucked it into my pocket for the moment.

_ That'll probably be a good help, not knowing where the hell I am in this dark hole._

I flipped through some charters for patients, skimming through them with little interest. Suddenly, a name on the list caught my attention.

"Amy Connors....,"

I skimmed through her personal information. Age, date of birth, until I arrived at a small paragraph that interested me in particular.

_ Like the others, Connors suffers from re-occurring amnesia, _

hallucinations, paranoia, and constantly slips in

and out of consciousness. Her particular incident has rendered her 

temporarily to in-hospital suspension until further 

notice as to her condition.

"Like the others? Who are the others?" I asked myself, not expecting an answer.

As expected, no answer was received but the moans of the thing outside, throwing itself repeatedly against the locked door.

I skimmed through more pages, hoping I could find more information concerning what I had just read.

_ Like the others...._

Why did those words disturb me like they did.

"Was there some sort of outbreak or something?" I asked myself. Instantly, my mind froze in silent fear. If there had been a virus, I was in danger of contamination...

_ If your not screwed over already!_

I shook my head, forcing the disturbing thought away. I couldn't afford to go into total panic right now. Not if I wanted to get out of here alive.

_ And with all important Marco parts included._

It was then that I felt the odd feeling.

It started as an itch in the back of my head, like an upcoming headache. I didn't pay much attention to it at first. I had better things to do then worry about a headache.

_ Like worrying about that goddamn thing outside!_

But as seconds passed, that itching became a sting. The sting began to spread an odd warmth through the back of my head, which turned to a dull thudding inside my mind. It felt at first, like a quick ice-pick headache. The kind received under severe stress.

_ Surprise Surprise. Why-ever would I be having one now?_

But as the thudding got louder, I realized there was something very wrong. I felt my mind numb, as if I were on the very verge of falling asleep. My eyes shut halfway, and I saw endless gray cloud my vision, sending me falling to the floor.

I sprawled there momentarily, feeling only the dull thudding in my head.

_ Am I having a seizure?_

My thoughts were oddly collected. Not the turmoil I would naturally expect from something like this.

Then the world went from gray, to black.

I coughed violently, and realized my eyes were shut tightly, hurting at the edges from squeezing them against the darkness so violently.

I opened them.

My sight was instantly pierced with light, and I coughed again, harder then before.

_ What the hell just happened?_

Everything around me looked different.

It was the same room, that much I was pretty sure. The same little space of an office where I had hidden from the thing in the strait-jacket. But the darkness was gone. The room was filled with a fair amount of light, mostly coming from the windows all around, where I could see the vague light flooding in.

The blood that had previously invaded the walls was gone. The walls were clean, albeit somewhat plain.

_ Well, it is a hospital._

The grating beneath my feet was gone. Replaced instead with a normal, everyday floor. The stench of the place before, where all had reeked of death, decay, and blood was gone. In its place was a musky scent, like that of a place not inhibited by anyone for a long time.

Most important of all, the strait-jacket monster was gone.

I stood shakily, my legs managing to hold me up after the strange episode.

The hallways were still deserted.

_ But at least you can see now!_

I reassured myself with that thought, happy to know that if anything else jumped on me from some corner, I'd at least be able to see where I was running.

After a moment of double checking, I left the little office, finding the door to be ordinary wood, with a smaller lock on it.

_ Was I dreaming? Hallucinating?_

Questions jumped through my mind as I walked, and I wondered if perhaps I had dreamed the place I had been in before. Dreamed the creatures that had attacked me.

I felt the stinging pain in my knee. Still present, though not as painful.

_ Didn't dream that. Too bad._

I turned right, and found myself at a pair of double doors. I could see the fog outside.

_ The exit, oh thank God...._

As I pushed on the door, I felt some odd instinct go off in my mind, and for a moment I expected the doors not to open. The thought made me shiver. However, the doors swung open soundlessly, and I stepped outside slowly, and was faced with another odd sight.

Besides the town being immersed in a fog, and the fact it was snowing in August.....there was not another soul in sight.

Taking a deep breath, I stepped down the small set of stone steps by the door, and made my way into this unknown place.


	6. Erika, Watchers

** CHAPTER 6: ERIKA, WATCHERS**

**********

Author's Note: The dialogue may become a bit odd in the chapters to come. But don't fret. It's really very simple. Whoever is the initial character presented in the chapter title, will be the one talking first, and interacting with the other characters. If the scene shifts to someone else POV in the same chapter, I will indicate it by separating the POV's with these: ********** Simple no?

** ************

_ In the Fog: Old Silent Hill_

"Doctor?"

Nothing.

After a moment of simply standing there, looking around the one room with astonishment, I had come to the conclusion that I was once again, alone.

_ Now where did that annoying creep get to?_

It was one room.

One. Room.

With no other doors but the one still locked in front of me. With no windows that didn't contain heavy-looking bars strong enough to keep out beak-mouthed dinosaurs.

"So where'dja go?" I muttered, my eyes straining while I tried to find some place in the room where he could have snuck out. A trapdoor. A secret lever. A button.

Anything.

Nothing.

_ My life's a bitch..._

After another five minutes of pointlessly wandering around the room, trying to find the 'secret lever', I gave up and found myself in a familiar position.

Mainly sitting on a little bed by a broken window, with a lost feeling creeping up on me.

"Stupid pushy jerk!" I huffed, trying to think of my next move. The thing outside was silent and unseen. Either gone, or hiding in wait for me to come out so it could tackle and eat me.

I tried to think of the lesser evil.

_ Maybe it flew away._

"Yeah, and maybe I'll just sprout wings and follow it!" 

_ Your talking to yourself again Erika!_

"Who asked you?"

I stopped at that point, find it a bit disturbing that I was listening to the little voice in my head. Much less *talking back* to it.

Standing, I walked over to each window, scanning as much of the outside as I could see in the limited sight. The bars prevented me from leaning out further, so I had to make due.

It *looked safe*. I shivered involuntarily. It was amazing how a place could look nearly normal one moment, then BOOM, and there was a flying Komodo catapulting itself at you from a broken window.

Moving away from the window, I stood in the center of the room pointlessly. There was little else I could think of doing but going back outside. Dr. Stine had vanished, and it looked like that thing had gone too.

_ Besides, what the hell else am I supposed to do?_

There were no phones anywhere, which I found a bit odd.

"This being a motel and all, you think they would have advanced technologically!" I muttered.

Looking around the table that sat before the wall to my right, I took the time to examine a few things. 

The one thing that caught my attention in particular was a map. It was faded and looked old, and words were scrawled in thick black ink at the left hand corner: ** OLD SILENT HILL**

Below that was the map. After a bit of eye-straining, I managed to find what I was looking for. Then, I mentally kicked my own ass for not noticing that it was circles in obvious thin red pen.

_ Silent Hill Resort...._

So that was it. Here I was, in this 'Old Silent Hill'. According to the street names (if I was reading them right, I was really no good at that) the motel was located on 'Sagan St.' After a bit more investigating, I discovered I was only a short walking distance from the Silent Hill Police Headquarters. 

_ Only a couple of blocks...I could make that on foot. _

Down another street by the Police Headquarters was Crichton St.

"And Achemilla Hospital...there's a bridge by there too...," I trailed off, muttering to myself as I tried to make heads or tails of more of the map.

I wondered if the bridge led to another section of Silent Hill.

_ Duh..._

Shrugging, I rather hastily crumbled the map together and stuffed it into my pocket. Getting back to the desk, I began to search the drawers. Most contained the usual. Some lists of names.

_ People who stayed here maybe..._

But none were familiar. Underneath all that were bills, tabs, some notes of renovation. Nothing really important.

The second and third drawers were empty, with the exception of some drawer lint and a broken pencil. I could tell that someone had chewed on it, and shut the drawer with a tired sigh.

It was the contents of the last drawer that caught my attention. 

Laying inside, slightly dusted but obviously usable was a small knife. It was the kind that you could order from a collector's magazine. The kind that folded together like an army knife, with a pretty design on the covering. The design on this one was faded and scraped, but it looked like some sort of Celtic knot.

"Cute," I folded the knife out, seeing that the blade itself was undamaged, and looked pretty sharp.

Deciding to keep it, I folded it back up and stuck it into my other pocket, creating two rather unsightly bulges in my tight jeans. 

_ How attractive._

Grumbling, I ignored it and moved on, heading for the doorway that headed out into Old Silent Hill.


End file.
